Because of possible exposure to measles, the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services recommended today that anyone who visited the Eppes Essen restaurant in Livingston on Sunday April 10, between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m., contact their health care provider immediately to discuss their potential exposure and risk of developing the illness.
During that five-hour period, restaurant patrons may have been exposed to two young adult women from France who were attending a party there. The two, who were not vaccinated against measles, had been exposed to the viral illness before arriving in New Jersey on April 7. They began developing symptoms three days later and then sought medical treatment at Saint Clare’s Hospital in Denville on April 12 and 13.
Although the women attended a private party at the restaurant, other patrons who haven’t been vaccinated or haven’t had measles are at risk because the disease is easily spread through the air when an infected person talks, coughs or sneezes. People can also get sick when they come in contact with mucus or saliva from an infected person.
DHSS stressed that anyone potentially exposed should call their provider first, so necessary arrangements can be made for them to be evaluated without putting other patients at the medical practice at risk.
People exposed at the restaurant on East Mount Pleasant Avenue could develop symptoms as early as April 15 or as late as May 1. Symptoms include rash, high fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes.
The viral disease causes serious medical complications – such as pneumonia and encephalitis — in 20 percent of patients, especially children under 5 and adults older than 20. Measles infection in a pregnant woman can lead to miscarriage, premature birth or a low-birth weight baby.
DHSS is working closely with local health departments in New Jersey to contact others who may have been exposed to the two women.
For more information, contact your health care provider or visit the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s web site.
